In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, we, the inventors, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. We also grow a smaller number of open pollinated seeds of each of these fruits, usually to capture recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as ‘Summer Sugarine’.
The present variety was hybridized by us in 2005 as a first generation cross using ‘Giant Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 14,240) nectarine as the selected seed parent and ‘Grand Bright’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 16,494) nectarine as the selected pollen parent. Upon reaching maturity the fruit of this hybridization was gathered, and the seeds were removed, cracked, stratified, germinated, and grown as seedlings on their own root in our greenhouse facility. Upon reaching dormancy we transplanted them to a cultivated area of our experimental orchard located near Le Grand, Calif., in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). During the fruit evaluation season of 2010 we selected the present variety as a single tree from the group of seedlings described above. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, we asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original tree in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of ‘Nemaguard’ (unpatented) rootstock upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its seed parent, ‘Giant Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 14,240) nectarine by being vigorous, by being self-fertile, by having a small blossom, by having a bitter kernel, and by producing nectarines that are mostly red in skin color, that are clingstone in type, that are very large in size, and that are sub-acidic in flavor, but is quite distinguished from it by having globose instead of reniform leaf glands and by producing fruit that is yellow instead of white in flesh color and that ripens about twenty-six days earlier.
The present variety is similar to its pollen parent, ‘Grand Bright’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 16,494) nectarine, by being self-fertile and by producing nectarines that are mostly red in skin color, yellow in flesh color, and clingstone in type, but is quite distinguished from it by having a bitter instead of sweet kernel, by having globose instead of reniform leaf glands, and by producing fruit that is larger in size, that is sub-acidic instead of acidic in flavor, and that ripens about one week later.
The present variety is most similar to ‘Candysweet XII’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 27,580) nectarine by having a large size tree, by having globose leaf glands, by being self-fertile, by having a bitter kernel, by having a similar chilling requirement, and by producing nectarines that are mostly red in skin color, yellow in flesh color, clingstone in type, firm in texture, globose to slightly oblong in shape, and sweet in flavor, but is distinguished therefrom by having a small non-showy instead of large showy blossom and by producing nectarines that are larger in size and that mature about twenty-six days later.